Intl firms asked to operate trains

LAHORE (APP) Pakistan Railways (PR) General Manager Saeed Akhtar has offered international private companies to come forward and operate trains. Talking to APP here on Sunday, he said that with the help of private companies, the department could be made corruption free and passengers could be provided better facilities. He said the department could be able to compete with the international standards if once the government help to bring it on the track. He said that crisis had not come all of sudden and the PR needed to be supported once. He said the best private companies would be offered to operate the trains and to provide all modren facilities to the passengers. He said the PR had done successful experiments in the department in line with the public private partnership, adding the performance of the department would be improved if private companies come and improve the system. To a question, the GM said that he knew that more than 50,000 of people had become unemployed who had used to come the second biggest city of the country for job and labour from suburb areas including Narowal section. However, the PR Adminstration was helpless to provide facilities to such passengers due to lack of locomotives.